Chapter 337: White remains

TLN: Hey guys, Reigokai here!

The mistake was haunting me, so I pushed myself a bit to translate this one! Sorry for the blunder >-

Enjoy :DDD!!

“Bishop…-sama.”

“You have regained the ability to speak on your own, huh. I am glad to see you are healthy.”

10 days after driving Chiback off, I received a report of a long line of people heading to our store, so I hurried there and waited for them, and it seems I pulled a bigger fish than I thought.

I wondered for a moment who it was, and it seems it was the Bishop-sama that’s the top of the Rotsgard church.

Even when going out, she keeps a veil on top of her face, huh.

No one from the people that came with her are hiding their faces, so I think it has nothing to do with their religion.

“It seems there was a silly misunderstanding the other day and we displeased you. We came here to apologize and once again ask for your favor.”

“The Bishop-sama herself?” (Makoto)

“It was the least we could do to show our sincerity. I actually wanted to come alone, but that wasn’t allowed -as expected- so I came here with a big group. I apologize for the inconvenience.”

…Chiback-san was going to the church and was acquainted with the Bishop, huh.

I was a.s.suming he was connected with someone of a lower seat.

For example…that…who was it…Ah, right! Shinai-san.

“No, more importantly, by misunderstanding, is it okay for me to think that you are referring to Chiback-san who leads the famed Appraisal Team?” (Makoto)

“Yes. It seems he has been moving lately for a certain matter, but I heard that he acted impolitely towards the Kuzunoha Company.”

“A certain matter, huh. Rather than calling it impolite, it was more like a rule was broken, and the talk just wasn’t matching. That’s all it was. It is something that happens often between merchants, so don’t worry.” (Makoto)

Ah, Shinai-san is here as well.

There’s a lot of other people that I can recognize from that time when I went to the church once.

The variant incident didn’t deal too many casualties on the side of the church, it seems.

“A broken rule? I heard from him that the negotiation couldn’t even proceed properly because of your arrogant att.i.tude. Can I hear your side?”

The Bishop-sama doesn’t show any anger, and simply seems to be confirming the facts.

Arrogant, huh.

Well, it is true that, when thinking about the positions, our att.i.tude might be arrogant.

But there’s rules we can’t bend.

Especially when they are to protect our own family.

If it is a rule like letting people of the church lower than the Bishop-sama change the designs of their white clothes, those can be changed anytime.

We also are pretty flexible when it comes to the change of uniforms, and if there’s suggestions, we would consider them.

“Yeah, of course. We of the Kuzunoha Company are still newcomers who lack a lot compared to the other famous big companies.” (Makoto)

“I don’t know if to call you humble, but maybe I should listen more of what you have to say before that.”

The Bishop urges me to continue.

“Thanks. Therefore, we have a number of rules in order to protect our company. One of those is to make the transaction clear.” (Makoto)

“…”

“Chiback-san and I couldn’t reach an agreement in that part. He returned angry, but once I checked from another source, I discovered that the hidden information as well as the information he disclosed were all lies.” (Makoto)

“…”

“The Kuzunoha Company doesn’t allow lies or secrets in our transactions. Whether it be a ‘certain matter’, a ‘certain personage’, the Aion Kingdom, or the Gritonia Empire; there’s no exceptions. That’s all we have to say about this.” (Makoto)

“…I see. Who knows what kind of grudge you might cause later, or in what political strife you would be involved with. You won’t be able to relax unless all risks are disclosed and safety is secured.”

The Bishop shows a decent understanding of my point while her tone turned slightly more peaceful.

But it is a bit different.

The first half is one thing, but especially the latter half.

“I am happy that you understood. But let me add something. We simply want to have a complete grasp of the circ.u.mstances. We have no intention of seeking safety in the requests.” (Makoto)

“…Then, would there be any need to have a grasp of the situation?”

Why is that your conclusion?

Knowing the situation is absolutely necessary to decide our actions.

It is not as if the circ.u.mstances are of no importance if there’s no risks.

Hm? Now that I say it myself, I feel like I thought like that not too long ago.

My way of thinking might have changed little by little at some point in time.

“We don’t care about the risks. We just have to decide whether we want to shoulder it or not. Knowing the situation allows us to know what meaning our actions will hold, what kind of intention they expect our next move to have; we properly want to know about it. That’s all there is to it.” (Makoto)

Even so, I am sure there will be a case in the future where we will judge the risks are too heavy to accept.

…And at that same time, in the cases where we think that there’s a point in accepting that amount of risk, we will accept it.

That’s why, thinking that the risk is the only deciding factor could bring about misunderstandings.

I have to properly explain that to her.

“‘I have no intention of being conveniently used by any political powers’, it sounds like quite the obstinate opinion though.”

“In the sense of ‘conveniently used’, you are correct. Depending on the circ.u.mstances, you could even take it as ‘arrogant’ just as Chiback-san reported.” (Makoto)

I smile and tell her the truth upfront.

It would be a pain to have them beat around the bush on the circ.u.mstances any more than this and try to bargain for it.

“…”

“…”

A strange tension and silence pressure fills up the room.

By the way, I think I know the reason why this Bishop-san has a veil on.

She has a wound on her face.

It is not a special wound that can’t be erased by the church -it is a plain old regular wound.

And yet, she is keeping it there.

She must have her circ.u.mstances.

I’ve heard that being in the Rotsgard church means they are in the promotion course, but a female bishop that doesn’t erase a wound that can be erased even though she is a believer of that G.o.ddess, isn’t that way too suspicious?

That Bishop-san sighs lightly.

Has she decided on her next move?

“You possess a strong conviction, Raidou-dono.”

‘-dono’, huh.

I think she didn’t use honorifics before.

Well, there’s nothing bad in being held with a decent amount of respect.

Also, she didn’t call me arrogant, but someone with strong conviction.

Looks like she will accept our reasoning to a certain degree.

“That’s around the few things we can take pride on after all.” (Makoto)

“That’s why you would even do things like disclosing the production method of your medicines, and devote yourselves for the town without caring for the profits?”

“…”

Our actions in the variant incident and after.

Especially in the after part, at a glance, we were acting with more compa.s.sion than even the church.

“I see. I do feel arrogance for a mere single company, but you could also say that the actions of Raidou-dono and the Kuzunoha Company are under a strong belief.”

“I am honored.” (Makoto)

“There’s parts that deviate from the teachings of the church, but your stance of a.s.sisting as many people in their livelihood as possible is truly sincere, and praiseworthy. And in reality, there’s no organization as revered as the Kuzunoha Company in Rotsgard.”

“…”

I had a bad feeling run down my back.

I have to be on guard when praised.

I am sure that the church as a whole doesn’t think positively of us after all.

I can’t read this Bishop-san at all, but lowering my guard is bad.

“However…”

“…”

Here it comes.

“At the same time, I think, as someone that’s not a G.o.d, that kind of selflessness and altruistic spirit like that of the G.o.ddess, who holds only compa.s.sion, rarely exists. People may be kind at times, but are also creatures that would occasionally only see themselves.”

“…”

“The actions of the Kuzunoha Company are dazzling and divine. I personally am deeply moved by that. And yet, on the other hand, you drove away Chiback-san who held a torment. What could this mean—”

“Yeah, it is as you say. I am not a G.o.d. Our actions for the town are, in the end, to better our company’s image. We are not as compa.s.sionate as you think, Bishop-sama.” (Makoto)

I delineate this before she jumps into a weird direction.

It is not like I am throwing the company down to help out people.

‘Compa.s.sion is finite’, if I point this out, it will also serve as a deterrent for people who call out our feelings.

That’s what Shiki has taught me.

“…”

“…”

The Bishop-san falls silent.

She probably was going to move towards that direction.

…That’s a bad flow.

It reminds me a bit of that time when Zara-san cornered me.

It was also in Rotsgard.

Right now we are in the Kuzunoha Company’s reception room which calms me down a bit though.

“You have…”

“?”

“Gained a lot more experience since the time I first met you. You are hard to deal with, Raidou-dono.”

“…Thank you very much.” (Makoto)

“By the way…do you know why I am the only one speaking?”

“? No idea. Isn’t it because you are the one with the highest position here, Bishop-sama?” (Makoto)

“It is because they are utilizing a secret skill that the church prides itself on. They are concentrating, they are being careful, and they are putting their all.”

““?!””

“…Hooh.” (Makoto)

Everyone aside from the Bishop-san showed clear signs of agitation.

That must mean she began talking about something that was outside their plans.

“It is called thought stealing, you see. You can think of it as a skill that allows one to peek on the thoughts of someone.”

“I feel like you have disclosed quite the terrible thing though?” (Makoto)

“Yeah. At the same time, we tried to measure your magic power amount as well, but…it was a failure. Not only you, but every single personnel.”

“We managed to get a general understanding of the magic power amount of the personnel!!”

“…So they say.”

One of the people that were sitting corrected the mistake of the Bishop-san.

No, even if you correct that part…

It doesn’t change the fact that that’s a hostile move.

But they were trying to read my mind, huh.

There were proposals in regards to those areas at the time when we finished making countermeasures for thought transmission eavesdropping at Asora.

It was something from quite a while ago.

Well, figures.

The church can’t be trusted.

That’s basically all it is.

“I don’t understand the reason why you are suddenly disclosing that secret though.” (Makoto)

“You don’t allow secrets in the Kuzunoha Company, right?”

“Of course.” (Makoto)

“That’s why I disclosed it. It seems there’s no need for an apology, so I wanted to try requesting you again.”

“…”

“We require the ambrosia urgently. Our investigations have led us to believe that we can see results if we perform treatment with it.”

“Shima-sama!! You must not!!”

So the Bishop-san’s name is Shima.

I didn’t know that.

Also, Shinai-san, you finally spoke.

“Is it about the medical treatment of a ‘certain personage’ that Chiback-san mentioned before?” (Makoto)

Of a ‘certain matter’.

“…Yeah. The church was made to shoulder…would be a lie. Under the orders of the Limia Great Church, we have sheltered and somehow managed to keep alive an important person of the Aion Kingdom…” (Shima)

“…”

This time it is an ‘important person’, huh.

Well, there’s a lot of words that hide stuff after all.

“The patient would be Dio-sama. The son of the General Morgan Igroad, who has lost his life in the Stella Fort war.” (Shima)

“Shima-sama!!” (Shinai)

The son of an Aion general.

They are literally having a dispute with Tsige presently.

But a patient, huh.

Even if his father has died, he is still someone from the Aion Kingdom’s side.

She has told me the situation, but it is a person in a complicated situation himself.

Shinai-san is going full shouting.

Looks like they really wanted to keep it a secret.

He is glaring at the Bishop Shima-san as if cursing her to death.

“Hmm…” (Makoto)

“As a merchant of Tsige that’s fighting against the Aion Kingdom for the sake of independence, this doesn’t sound like a favorable job to undertake?” (Shima)

…I see.

That’s why they tried to obtain the medicine without revealing the details.

Hmm…

“This is something that I confirmed with Chiback-san as well, but…” (Makoto)

“?”

“Is what you need only the ambrosia?” (Makoto)

Or the complete recovery of that Dio person.

Of course, their complete recovery must be their number one objective, but how much do they seek from us?

“…”

“…”

“Obviously, Raidou-dono. We need that elixir no matter what!” (Shinai)

Shinai-san says they require the ambrosia, but Shima-san is looking at me silently.

It really does seem like the chances are high that just the medicine alone won’t be enough.

“No.” (Shima)

“?!”

“As the Bishop in charge of this place, I would like Dio-sama’s full recovery.” (Shima)

…It is as if she is saying ‘it is my duty’.

Looks like there’s the intentions of someone higher than her, an incredibly important person in the Limia Great Church.

I can see that Shima-san herself doesn’t want to get too involved in it.

“In other words, in the case where the ambrosia is not enough, another request might be added?” (Makoto)

“Yes. It is simply that the ambrosia is currently the medical treatment with the highest prospects, but it isn’t certain.” (Shima)

“…”

“Raidou-dono?” (Shima)

A patient, huh.

I won’t be able to tell any further unless I hear about the disease in detail, but whether it is a strange disease, an incurable disease, or a curse disease, I honestly want to save him from his disease.

If it is possible, that is.

The problem is his standing.

He is the son of a general, so if we were to cure him, he might head to war.

When that happens, even when we went through the trouble of curing him, he would just be dying.

…?

Hm?

That doesn’t really matter, huh.

The decisions he does and how he lives after being cured have nothing to do with us.

Right.

Now then, just what it is that I…

No, there’s no real problem.

Sorry to say but, if he is going to show up in the battlefield, it will just happen.

If he doesn’t want to throw away his life, he will be treasuring it after all.

“What’s important is what I think, right?” (Makoto)

“?”

“By the way, in regards to the disease, I would like to see it personally…together with a specialist.” (Makoto)

Oops. I almost said I would be going alone.

Let’s bring Shiki along.

“Does that mean you are taking the job?” (Shima)

She seems to be a bit…no, quite surprised.

“Well, there’s no doubt a patient exists, and it seems it is true that it is a situation that doesn’t allow for much speculation.” (Makoto)

“I can’t speak of the disease here. How about you go see it on a day that’s most convenient to you?” (Shima)

She won’t say it, but will show it, huh.

That’s fine with me.

She doesn’t intend to hide it after all.

“Then, how about today?” (Makoto)

“?! That would help us out.” (Shima)

“I will prepare at once. Bishop Shima-sama, everyone, please make preparations to return.” (Makoto)

If the patient is in Rotsgard, faster is better.

I wonder what disease it is.

If it is a disease we know of, it would be easier to make countermeasures for it.

I would like that to be the case.

It instead turned into a situation where I was the one who hurried Shima-san and her group.

And so, Shiki and I headed to the church.

◇◇◆◆◇◇◆◆◇◇◆◆◇◇◆◆

Seeing the one there, I lost my words.

Shiki seemed to be surprised after seeing something unexpected too.

“…This is Dio-sama. He seems to be a bit calm today.” (Shima)

I heard they needed the ambrosia, so I thought at worst it would be the curse disease that cornered the Rembrandt household, but this was unexpected.

Within a bulky cage with several tens of spells set on it, there was him.

His congested eyes were bright red; his stomach and left arm were white and swollen; this is the thing that we thought we wiped out…

“A variant…no, about to become one…? To think you would keep him alive in this state. Man, the church is cruel. It has been a while since I have shivered. Even though he must be in quite a lot of pain, not even being able to turn into a variant.” (Shiki)

A person on the verge of becoming a variant.

A person, yet not one.

Seeing the young man called Dio that is bound by chains and has lost his sanity, drooling all over, I ended up frowning.

What are they trying to accomplish by keeping this alive?

I felt like I was peeking at the ugliness of the church, the hyumans, no…the people.